They eventually calmed down and rose to eat the meal Mrs Hopkins had prepared. Meriel kept glancing at her mother. Lynne had changed; she had lost weight and was very pale. It was as though the revelations she had tried for so long to hide had brought on an illness. Watching her mother she was aware of a lessening of her own pain. How much harder it had been for Lynne and her father to have been faced with her anger and resentment.
Feeling renewed happiness she wanted to hug Leo, thank him for his persistence in making her face up to the situation, but her awareness of him as an attractive and desirable man stopped her. Instead she hugged his mother.
Leaving her parents talking to Mrs Hopkins, Meriel found herself in the kitchen, with Leo standing with tea towel at the ready, preparing to wash the dishes. Then his mother bustled in and sent him out of the room. Laughingly he went, complaining about being bullied. Meriel began to wash the dishes, tense and uneasy. Why hadn’t he stayed and shared the task?
‘He’s been a wonderful son,’ Mrs Hopkins said as she took charge of the tea towel. ‘When his father and older brother died he was still a boy. With my hardly realizing his sacrifices he took on the role of deputy father to his sisters and gave up the lovely years of fun and friendships, flirting and courting. That happy time passed him by and I regret my blindness – my selfishness – in not seeing it.’ She glanced at Meriel and said, ‘Now, I think perhaps he was simply waiting for that special person to find him.’
‘Don’t you mean for him to find her?’
‘Oh no. He found her a long time ago.’
Meriel didn’t reply, she wasn’t sure what was meant. Was there someone special in his life, someone who wasn’t aware of his love? Or tied up and unable to accept it? The thought depressed her and she excused herself as soon as the dishes were washed and went back into the living room.
Lynne and Walter were sitting close together. Leo walked in through the french windows, arms filled with roses, which he gave to Lynne. He disappeared again and Meriel followed him. He picked up secateurs and began cutting a second bunch. ‘These are for you,’ he said. ‘Would you like to choose?’
‘Whatever you give me will be perfect,’ she said, staring at him as he concentrated on his task. When he was satisfied with his selection they sat for a while in the seat beneath the rowan tree and he talked about the flowers he grew and asked her advice about changes to the layout of the beds. She couldn’t think of such mundane problems and just nodded and smiled as he described his plans for the autumn. She was wondering about the mysterious woman in his life and inventing reasons for them not wanting to reveal their love and marry. She felt a sadness wrap around her and went inside, where the sight of her parents lifted her spirits even if it failed to cheer her out of her growing melancholy.
Drinks were offered and the mood of celebration was revived and lasted until it was time to leave. Leo drove her home but she avoided conversation apart from thanking him for the part he played in getting her family together again. She feigned tiredness and closed her eyes to discourage anything more and when he stopped in the lane beside the path to Badgers Brook he didn’t suggest going in.
‘I have to get back,’ he said, ‘but I’m so glad it worked out well. You’re very fortunate, Meriel, having so many people who love you.’
‘I know,’ she said, reaching for the door handle. He got out and walked around to open the door for her and for a moment they stood close together before he kissed her lightly on the cheek and turned away.
She waved as he drove off although he wouldn’t have been able to see in the darkness, then forcing excitement, she ran into the house calling for Lucy to tell her about the wonderful evening.
‘I feel so ashamed,’ she admitted when they were sipping their late-night drink. ‘Leo managed to put it all into perspective and I’m determined to forget about why I was given away and just be grateful that it was Mam and Dadda who adopted me.’
‘You were very lucky,’ Lucy agreed.
‘As for George Dexter, he’s a bitter man for whatever reason, and is best ignored.’
‘You have good reason to be grateful to Leo,’ Lucy reminded her softly and Meriel frowned and looked away.
Teifion had an unexpected visit from his father. He was putting the tables back after Betty had washed the floor in the bar when there was a knock at the side door. The prepared smile left his face as his father pushed him aside and walked in.
‘I have to go away for a few days and I need you to cover the office,’ he announced.
‘Sorry, Dad, but I can’t let Betty down. I’ve only been here a little while and I need her to know I’m reliable.’
‘Reliable? You? Not a word I’d use for you! Come on, for once in your life do something to help me. I’m your father. It’s the family business involved, you can’t refuse to help.’
‘Where are you going?’
‘None of your business.’
‘Sorry I can’t help. I work here now and I’m enjoying it.’ He suggested one or two people who might help but was adamant in his refusal to let Betty down. George shouted a stream of insults and stormed out. Getting into the car he set off for Brighton, determined to bring Frieda back.
With his heart racing, Teifion closed and bolted the door, feeling guilty but at the same time knowing his response had been the right one.
Leo didn’t appear over the following days, although he phoned the office and asked how the plans for the auction were progressing. Her father also called and her mother asked if she could come down and meet them for lunch. ‘Mum, we’re so busy we wouldn’t enjoy it. Can we make it next week? We’re so anxious for everything to go well.’
‘Of course. I understand how important this one is. I’ve been through a few such events with your father, remember,’ she said with a laugh. ‘Do you need Dadda’s help? Or Leo’s? They’ve both offered, but will only come if asked.’
‘I think I’d rather we did it on our own, just for this one.’
‘We understand, darling. Good luck with everything. I know you’ll do well.’
Lucy was concerned about whether they had enough people to help but when Gerald called and offered to assist, she refused. ‘Experienced help is what we want,’ she explained, ‘not people who will get in the way. Even the furniture shifters need to know what’s expected of them.’
‘I wouldn’t want to move things,’ he said in mock horror. ‘I was thinking more an administrative role, writing down what’s sold, the prices for each item and working out commission, I’m more suited to such things.’
‘I’m sure you are,’ Meriel said with a glance at Lucy.
‘Gerald has dreams of becoming a part of all this, if you and he marry,’ Meriel whispered to her friend later, ‘so watch him.’ She was smiling but although the words were light-heartedly spoken, she was serious.
‘I won’t let him take any of our worries away from us! We need them all!’ Lucy too spoke jocularly but like Meriel, she was aware of the possible danger. Gerald was looking for a comfortable life and she wondered if that was all he saw when he looked at her, and uttered words of love. She found him attractive and there was something safe about being one of a loving couple. It promised a fulfilled life in the future, a home, children, someone there in good times and bad.
She had no illusions about his loving her and wondered, rather sadly, just how important love was to this thirty-year-old who desperately wanted a wife and a comfortable home.
The time since the war ended, when they had not been together, was fading from her memory, and the earlier years when they had been engaged no longer seemed separated by that emptiness but a continuing part of their long relationship. So many years to look back on plus the selective memories of someone half in love, made it hard to think of giving him up. She wondered sadly how many other people settled for second best. Was Gerald falling into that category? And, in Gerald’s eyes, was she?
She was woken from her reverie by Teifion walking into the office. ‘Lucy, I have an idea.’
‘Is it something I’ll like? If so sit down and tell me,’ she said. ‘If it's a favour then you’ll have to wait until after the weekend, we’re busy.’
‘That’s it! I’m free on Saturday as Ed Connors is helping Betty. ‘I’ve got the whole day off. Lucky eh? I can come and give a hand. My years of experience are at your disposal! And, I don’t want paying. And, in case you’re in any doubt, I won’t be representing my father, just helping you.’
‘Why are you having the day off? Saturday’s a busy day at the Ship, surely?’
He didn’t tell her how he had pleaded for the time, wanting the excuse to share the day with her. ‘Betty says I’ve worked so hard, doing much more than I’m paid for so I can have the day off. I’m free on Friday too, at least between opening hours, so if there’s any setting up, I’m your man.’ After a brief discussion with Meriel his offer was accepted.
George was predictably furious when he returned and stormed at his son, who seemed unaffected by the tirade of words although in fact he hated upsetting his father, afraid of seeing him collapse again in that frightening way.
Frieda was home again and acting the part of the loving wife whenever they were in company. In private she and George rarely spoke to each other. She had insisted that her affair would continue as she couldn’t live with George unless she had what she called her freedom. She agreed to return to George and play the part of ‘the dutiful wife’. The words were cruel. What he wanted was a loyal, loving and truthful wife, a partner in everything he did, and a ‘dutiful’ wife was as far away from that as he could imagine. By her occasional appearances in Cwm Derw and her pretence at being his loving wife he would at least have had some pride left, and sadly, he had settled for that.
He stopped going home at lunchtime whether Frieda was at home or not, either going to the café or for a snack at the Ship and Compass. Betty made him a few sandwiches and, with a pint, he was content with that. He took a daily paper and hid behind it, using it as a screen to avoid conversation with other customers. He was in no mood for polite chatter. The jovial businessman, everyone’s friend, was a part he played in the office and shed every time he stepped out of its door. Let down by his wife and with a son who refused to work for him, Walter’s face, smiling contentedly, lurked at the edges of his mind as he tried to hold back on the anger that threatened to consume him.
He stayed at the office late each evening and sometimes called once again at the pub for a leisurely pint before going home. He found some savage satisfaction in watching his son being pleasant to unimportant people, although he always made sure it was Betty who served him. There was always a meal waiting and sometimes Frieda had eaten hers and he ate alone. Somehow he found that satisfying too. Punishing himself seemed a bitter kind of pleasure when he was unable to punish Frieda – or Walter Evans.
He often passed the office of Evans and Calloway and childishly wished he could throw something at the window, destroy Walter’s daughter’s success, smash it into oblivion. To add to his misery the place always seemed busy. It was rare to pass when there was no one there. Often several people filled the small space, looking at the houses on offer or at the desk, presumably making enquiries about a house move. ‘Upstarts,’ he said aloud and someone passing looked at him and hurried away, alarmed by his red, angry complexion.
Between opening hours and the necessary work behind the scenes at the Ship, Teifion went through the arrangements for the sale with Meriel and Lucy. He didn’t interfere, apart from offering a few helpful suggestions, upon which they acted. He and Lucy seemed to get along surprisingly well, with her having so recently considered him as one of the enemy, and Meriel wondered how Gerald would feel about their companionship.
Gerald’s feelings were alarm and resentment. He decided that it would be a sensible move to propose. A partnership between Lucy and Teifion would be so convenient it had to be stopped before either of them realized it.
Having made up his mind he hated to delay but knew the important sale was filling Lucy’s and Meriel’s days and their minds, and he wouldn’t receive a good hearing. Instead he planned an evening purporting to celebrate the success of the auction but in fact it would be an evening on which he would propose.
His father had arranged for him to go to London for a few days to attend a sale of old vehicles including several motorbikes. He had a list of models in which his father was interested and the prices he expected to pay. At the same time Gerald intended to gather leaflets and information on the latest cars, in the hope of persuading his father to concentrate on selling new machines rather than dirty-fingered repairs to old bikes which he hated and his father loved. Polishing new body work, persuading the wealthy to part with their cash was far more his style.
He booked a table for dinner in an out-of-town hotel for the evening following the auction and ordered flowers and a gift of Joy perfume to be delivered to the table. The price of the perfume nearly gave him a heart attack as he handed over the money in a shop in London, but he concentrated on looking nonchalant, hoping the tic at the side of his face didn’t show. He knew he had to imply generosity and the promise of an attentive and adoring husband, he had to convince her she would be putting her life in safe hands. He had a moment of doubt when he wondered if Lucy would actually know the value of his gift, but decided he could accidentally let slip the price to make sure she understood.
Although they worked together for just a few days, Lucy had become used to Teifion’s presence. When he arrived she would glance up and nod a welcome then they would begin discussing the various arrangements. Together they sorted out many small problems that occurred. Meriel was amused and a little worried, wondering whether Teifion was reporting back their plans to his father, who seethed with anger over his lost business.
Confidence in him was revived when they walked to the office early one morning and saw several of their posters advertising the sale had been fly-posted around the streets. One, to which Teifion proudly pointed, was on George Dexter’s office window. Meriel wondered how the man would react when he noticed it.
‘Best we never find out,’ Lucy said with a chuckle.
Meriel and Lucy were up very early on the day of the sale. Leo had arrived at five thirty to find them up and awaiting his arrival before eating a simple breakfast of tea, toast and jam. To their surprise Teifion walked in just before six. They had expected him to be one of the later arrivals, forgetting momentarily his own experience of days like today.
They were on their way by six thirty, arriving to find men already at work spreading out the garden items and farm equipment in the grounds around the barn where the auction would take place, and adding labels carrying the lot numbers. The well-dressed Mr Lewen was there, suitably dressed in corduroys and a thick jumper and on his feet instead of highly polished shoes he wore workmanlike wellingtons, which were cleaner than those seen in a shop window, Meriel noted with amusement. Harry Power was there too and he waved as he dashed past on an ancient bicycle, carrying a paperboy’s sack filled with leaflets, around his neck.
The grounds and the two barns being used for the sale were soon filling up with people examining the varied items. Most carried catalogues and were marking lots on which they would later bid. Any nervousness Meriel and Lucy had felt in the past few days quickly left them and they went around, planning their route as they went, intending to step outside for some of the larger and more expensive items.
On time precisely, Meriel and Lucy hugged each other before they went to the desk to begin. Their hearts were thumping painfully yet they both appeared calm. They sat at the desk, side by side, with Lucy following the lists, noting the successful bidders and the agreed price and at times directing the men who were to display the pieces as they came up.
Leo stood near and Teifion waited beside the desk out of sight within the crowd, ready if he should be needed to move anything or help to display them. In the entrance, squeezing himself into the already densely packed barn, George found a place from where he could watch Meriel and Lucy but not be seen.
The barn where they were to begin had been filled to capacity long before they were to start with many more standing outside craning their necks to listen to Meriel’s clear voice, noting the progress on their catalogues with a moving finger sliding down the page.
Bids came fast as the more interesting items of furniture were sold first and almost without being truly aware of the sums involved, Meriel knew the prices were slightly above what she had hoped. A collection obviously from a child’s nursery, produced a spate of bids and she felt the usual excitement as the prices rose. After years without such luxuries, even now, five years after the war had ended, there was an excitement as fine old rocking horses, dolls and dolls’ houses, prams and clothes plus other paraphernalia went under the hammer.
When they stopped for lunch she and Lucy did a rough estimate and were encouraged by the sales so far. Teifion went to the tea tent and brought them each a plate of sandwiches and a sticky bun, which Lucy declared she was too excited to eat, but ate them anyway.
Harry Power cycled past, this time eating a doughnut. With a thumb stabbing the air he called, ‘Well done, ladies, you’re doing well.’
‘What did you expect?’ Lucy shouted through a mouthful of crumbs. ‘We’re the best!’
Meriel hushed her. ‘Don’t tempt fate, we’ve a long way to go yet!’
‘It seems to be going well,’ Leo said, bringing his sandwiches and joining them. ‘I think this one is going to break records. You haven’t started on the farm equipment yet and already the money’s pouring in.’ He had stayed in the background, just watching in case of trouble. They were a good-tempered crowd but just occasionally there could be an argument between two bidders getting out of hand and he was ready to deal with any unpleasantness. But whether because of two women being in charge or because there were plenty of bargains for all, there were no moments of anxiety for him. He had relaxed and watched with immense pride at the way Meriel dealt with the long and tiring day.
Walter and Lynne were there too but like Leo, they kept very much in the background, soaking up the atmosphere and swelling with pride at their capable and talented daughter. Her adoption was forgotten in the thrill of the moment as on so many occasions in the past. She was their daughter, their wonderful girl. They were happily unaware of George looking at them with envy and hatred.
Meriel and Lucy watched as the men helped the purchasers with their goods, heaving the heavy and awkward lots on to waiting lorries, fastening the dockets on to their clipboards duly signed. Lucy’s eyes were sparkling. ‘This is wonderful, Meriel. I can’t imagine ever wanting to do anything else, can you?’
The rest of the day went well, with higher than expected prices being achieved for almost all the goods. With Leo and Teifion offering help, seeming to do what was needed before being asked, they moved from one barn to the next, carrying their precious lists and notebooks. The table and chairs arrived ahead of them, from barn to barn then out into the grounds to dispose of the last of the collection. There were still many shortages and the opportunity to buy second-hand some of the equipment they couldn’t otherwise afford had brought farmers and smallholders from miles away.
There was no sign of the crowd diminishing; as the day went on some left but more continued to arrive. The auction moved outside; there were several pieces of stone statuary, everything from birdbaths and planters to huge full-sized figures of men and women on plinths, towering over the crowd. There was no initial bid for a collection of dog kennel, basket and bowl, but Meriel’s father began to bid and eventually bought the lot for Rascal. Tennis rackets, croquet sets, picnic tables, deckchairs, curtains, the place was a treasure trove that had tempted unbelievable crowds.
Meriel knew that Leo’s reminders about extra advertising, his persuasions to widen the area she had intended to canvass with leaflets and posters, had been a large part of the day’s success. Teifion too had been a valuable addition to the wonderful auction and catching a glimpse of George and remembering the poster Teifion had stuck on his window, they laughed and waved at him. Lowering his head George hurried away.
It was after eight o’clock before they could leave. Lynne had already disappeared and her father told her she was making sure there was a meal waiting for them all at Badgers Brook. Leaving the temporarily employed workmen to finish clearing up, and arranging for the few curtains and oddments to be disposed off, a weary Meriel and Lucy walked towards the cars. Meriel smiled as she heard Leo warning the men to ‘Make sure there’s nothing more than a few flattened grasses to show we’ve been here.’
‘They’ve been marvellous,’ Lucy said. ‘They all worked so hard and with remarkable efficiency considering they’d never done this before. Even Mr Slick-Dresser Henry Lewen can’t complain.’ Lucy said with a sigh. ‘What a day!’
‘Henry? Is that his name?’ Meriel asked, amused.
‘Yes, doesn’t it sound exactly right for him?’
‘You ought to refer to him as Henry, that’ll upset your Gerald.’
‘Is he my Gerald?’
‘Do you want him to be?’
‘Come on, get into the car, I’m suddenly starving.’
Leo ran up, having gone back to discuss the success of the sale with Mr Lewen, to gauge his opinion on the day. ‘He was smiling widely and proclaimed himself more than delighted with the day,’ he reported to them. He hugged Lucy, then Meriel, holding her just a little longer, telling her she was wonderful.
Meriel felt the tiredness falling from her and wallowed in his praise. With an arm still around her he walked her over to Walter and repeated his comments about the owners’ delight. Meriel was sorry when the weight of his arm left her and they got into the cars.
Leo and Teifion had been invited to join them for supper and Lynne had a casserole warming and some bread crisping in the fire oven. With fresh fruit offered as dessert they considered it a feast.
Lucy was about to sit and begin when there was a knock at the door. A very agitated Gerald stood there asking for Lucy.
‘Come in, we can find another plateful,’ Meriel said, but he refused. She was aware then of his anxious expression and asked, ‘Gerald? Is something wrong?’
‘Yes, er no, not exactly. I booked a meal for us and when I went to find Lucy she was still busy, then I was told she’d gone. We’re late but we can still make it if I phone to explain.’
Lucy appeared and when he explained she shook her head. ‘Sorry, Gerald, but I’m too tired. We’re going to eat then collapse.’
‘But it’s arranged, something rather special to congratulate you on today. From what I’ve been told you were wonderful. Amazing.’
‘At the moment all I feel is exhaustion. Can we make it another day?’
‘Please, Lucy. It’s important to me.’ He gave a half-smile and added, ‘The flowers won’t be as fresh tomorrow. Flowers and a special gift for a special lady.’
She looked at him, the expression of devotion as his eyes stared into hers, the pleading tone, his hands reaching out and holding hers and suddenly she knew. He was going to propose. Panic filled her, both pleasure and pain. How much she had wanted this but now she was unsure. She had changed, her life had been transformed; marriage and children and a lifetime of Gerald no longer encapsulated her entire world.
‘Gerald, it’s a kind thought and normally I’d love to come but tonight I wouldn’t be good company, I‘d be sneaking glances at my watch, wondering how soon we can leave. You don’t deserve that. Please, let’s make it another day, shall we?’
His shoulders drooped and his hands fell to his sides, a picture of utter dejection. Once more his actions were genuine but again, Lucy found his behaviour unconvincing.
She went back into the kitchen where her meal had been put into the oven to keep warm, looking very thoughtful. She brightened and joined in the conversations and good-humoured laughter and said nothing of what had happened.
It wasn’t until everyone had gone and they were making their traditional hot drink to take up to bed that she told Meriel what she suspected. ‘“Flowers” he said, and a special gift. I’m sure he was going to ask me to marry him.’
‘And why doesn’t that thrill you?’ Meriel asked softly. ‘Why aren’t you bright-eyed and glowing with happiness?’
‘I no longer want to trust my life to him and I don’t really know why. Once it was all I dreamed of.’
‘You were an assistant in the hairdresser’s then, look at you now!’
‘That’s the trouble. I’m no longer that nervous girl afraid of being left on the shelf, desperate to say yes to a proposal of marriage.’
‘Being successful in a business doesn’t preclude you from everything else – at least, I hope not!’ she joked.
‘No, but perhaps it makes Gerald consider me a better prospect.’
‘A prospect? That’s what we call someone offering business.’
‘Perhaps that’s what I am. To Gerald. Offering him a share of all this, something that belongs to you and me.’
‘Nonsense, he isn’t that stupid.’
‘Neither am I. Meriel, will you do something for me, a big favour?’
‘Of course.’
‘Will you hint to Gerald that I’m leaving Evans and Calloway? Just a hint that I’m not pulling my weight, and that we’re to part company?’
‘I can’t do that! Someone might believe it and it isn’t true, you’re an equal partner. I can’t lie about such a thing.’
‘Please, just for a while. Just a hint, to Gerald. Then we’ll see whether he changes his mind, about the flowers and the special gift for a special lady. Please?’
‘All right, I’ll try but don’t expect me to be convincing. I’m not a natural liar.’
‘This cocoa is cold,’ Lucy said.
‘Then make some more, you useless apology for a partner.’ The attempt at a joke fell flat and Meriel pleaded again for Lucy not to make her lie.
Lucy was adamant. ‘I have to know,’ she said.
‘If you will go to such lengths, you can’t be too sure of your own feelings.’
‘That’s the problem, I no longer am.’
Gerald went to the hotel and collected the flowers and the perfume and went home. This wasn’t going to be as easy as expected. He’d been so sure she’d collapse into his arms and say – Yes. He passed his father’s coat in the hallway and the slight smell of petrol and grease wafted towards him. He felt choked by it. He had to persuade Lucy to marry him. Becoming a partner and eventually running an estate agency was his only hope of escaping from his father’s garage.
Escaping from his father’s business was also on Teifion’s mind. After leaving Badgers Brook he was helping Betty to clear the last of the glasses and bottles away, his mind filled with the day and evening he had spent with Lucy and Meriel. He was surprised that, having been disenchanted with the business when he had worked for his father, he had found the day filled with excitement. Looking back he couldn’t remember ever being happier. Yet the business was exactly the same. The only variations were Lucy and Meriel, instead of his father and the people who had worked for him over the years. How could he have been so bored in such a fascinating profession?
‘Something on your mind, young Teifion?’ Betty asked. ‘Only that’s the same glass you’ve been drying for the last ten minutes.’
‘Sorry, Betty. I’ve been thinking about the auction. Lucy and Meriel are very good, they made a real success of the day. I enjoyed it far more than I’d expected. Why wasn’t it as interesting when I worked for Dad?’
‘You needed to spread your wings. Perhaps you’ll go back one day and be a part of it again.’
He shook his head. ‘I don’t think so. I enjoyed it because of Lucy and Meriel.’
‘But mainly Lucy?’ she asked, her head on one side like a bird searching for titbits.
He shook his head deprecatingly. ‘Lucy has her Gerald.’
‘Since when would a bit of competition stop a full-blooded Welshman?’
He grinned and put the last glass in its place.
‘It’s Sunday tomorrow,’ she reminded him. ‘A day off. Why don’t you call at Badgers Brook and see if they’ve recovered?‘
Meriel and Lucy slept late and it was the impatient yelps of Rascal that eventually brought them downstairs, heavy-eyed, to be greeted by the young dog demanding to go outside. Lucy was first up and she went to the kitchen to make tea. As she lit the flame under the kettle, her thoughts were twisting and turning with images of a wedding with Gerald at her side, interspersed with visions of future house valuations, and auctions in which she stood beside Meriel and Leo, with the shadowy presence of Teifion close by.
As Meriel emerged from her room and followed her into the kitchen she was sitting staring at the kettle that was beginning to sing.
‘Have you changed your mind about testing Gerald?’ Meriel asked with a yawn. ‘I know it’s bothering you. I didn’t sleep very well even though I was desperately tired and I heard you creep down sometime after midnight to make another hot drink.’
‘I can’t explain why, but when he talks of love and caring and all that stuff, he isn’t convincing. I can’t afford to make a mistake and although I know it’s dishonest and I’m asking you to share the lie, I have to know before I can decide how I feel. Does that make sense to you?’
‘As much as anything makes sense through this fuzzy, overtaxed brain of mine this morning. Wasn’t it a marvellous experience, Lucy?’
They drank their tea still wearing dressing-gowns, in the garden, closing their eyes against the sun and wallowing in the joy of having a free day to recover from the past hectic week. Slowly they came to and having decided on baked potatoes for lunch with whatever they could find to have with them, they scrubbed some, allowing a couple extra in case of visitors, put them in the oven, dressed themselves and went back into the garden.
It was there Gerald found them when he arrived at midday. The dog warned of a visitor and they looked towards the corner of the house without getting up. Both girls felt dismay on seeing him put his head around and call to them; Meriel knowing she had to prepare her story and Lucy because she didn’t know how she should feel.
He brought a huge bouquet of flowers from behind him with a flourish and on one knee handed them to Lucy. She panicked. Surely he wasn’t going to propose there and then, in front of Meriel?
‘Get up, Gerald, we had a heavy dew this morning,’ she said in a squeaky voice. Laughing, Meriel went in to make coffee.
‘Are you feeling recovered?’ he asked, taking the seat vacated by Meriel.
‘Not really. I don’t think I can do that very often. I found it all too exhausting. Hairdressing was far easier.’
He laughed and ruffled her hair. ‘You wouldn’t go back to that, surely?’
She shrugged, glanced towards the door through which Meriel was carrying a tray.
‘Who knows what the future holds, Gerald?’
‘You aren’t serious, about not enjoying your success? I’ll always help when things get hectic. You can rely on me, always.’
She didn’t reply, just moved to make a space between newspapers and notebooks for the tray. There was an uneasiness as they sat sipping coffee, conversation stilted, and he wondered what had gone wrong. He wasn’t invited to stay for lunch as he had hoped, and when Lucy went inside he asked Meriel if anything was wrong. ‘You haven’t argued, have you? You seem to get on so well.’
‘Things haven’t been right for a while,’ Meriel said, crossing her fingers as she lied. ‘Yesterday was the final disaster. Papers missing, a client not given the correct statement, accounts muddled up, some goods not paid for, information not passed on. Thank goodness Teifion and Leo were on hand. It’s no good pretending, Gerald, Lucy isn’t cut out for this complicated business.’
‘She wasn’t joking then, when she hinted about going back to hairdressing?’
She took him to the shed where the hairdressing equipment they had bought had been stored, and silently shrugged. ‘It was always a possibility, or why did she buy this? Thank goodness she’ll have you to support her. You do plan to propose, don’t you? She’ll need a loving partner to console her when she’s told to leave. Even though she’s expecting it. it will still be a shock and disappointment. She’ll need you, Gerald, very much.’
He didn’t stay very long after Meriel’s bombshell and the conversation was stilted. He filled the silences with idle flattery and gentle enquiries, most of which Lucy avoided answering. With a cursory kiss he left and Lucy watched him go, in no doubt about his change of heart. She felt tears well in her eyes and she turned away from Meriel’s sympathetic face.
‘Best I know. There’s no point in kidding myself I was loved for my brains, my bubbling personality and outstanding beauty, eh?’
‘Baked potatoes and salad for lunch, come on. It’s just you and me. Until someone comes along who’ll love us for all those things.’
A call from the side of the house alerted them to visitors and without their usual delight they turned, half expecting to see Gerald again. ‘I’m not stopping,’ Teifion assured them, misunderstanding their glum expressions. ‘I just called to ask how you’re feeling after yesterday. I met Gerald on my way and he seemed to think it wasn’t as good as we all thought. What went wrong?’
‘Everything’s fine,’ Meriel said. ‘It was a very successful day, thanks to Lucy, and you and Leo and all the rest.’
‘Then what’s up with Gloomy Gerald?’
Lucy laughed. ‘I’ll tell you one day, not now.’
Teifion stared at her and saw she was blushing, then he looked pointedly at the flowers. ‘A proposal?’ he mouthed at Meriel, who shook her head.
‘She turned him down? Thank goodness for that. I’d hate to think of someone as talented and lovely as Lucy stuck with someone like Gerald Cook, wouldn’t you?’
He didn’t stay for lunch, as Betty had food prepared, and Lucy stared after him as he walked down the path to the lane stopping to wave and blow a kiss as he went back to the Ship and Compass, whistling cheerfully.
‘I think Gerald proposed and was turned down,’ he told Betty happily, as he went through the side door of the Sunday-silent pub.
The following weeks settled down to the usual mixture of enquiries and occasional sales and Lucy was aware of the rarity of Gerald’s appearances. The ‘special gift for a special lady’ hadn’t appeared and the flowers faded and died.
‘I was right, wasn’t I?’ she said to Meriel as they gathered their papers and set off for work one morning. ‘Gerald hasn’t been beating the door down to see me since we made him think I was about to be sacked.’
‘It could be coincidence, he might be ill or something.’
‘We have a telephone and so does his father.’
‘Perhaps he’s waiting for you to use it,’ Meriel suggested with a smile.
‘It’s very hurtful, to know he only wanted me when he thought I was brilliant and successful and on the way to making a fortune.’
‘Hardly a fortune.’
‘Better than an assistant hairdresser. More prestige in being a business woman and that’s what he admires – besides the money.’
‘Don’t be too sure, give it a few more days.’
Teifion called in as soon as the office opened and they talked about many things and Gerald was pushed, just a little way, out of her thoughts. Teifion had a few hours off each morning and offered to come and help. ‘Perhaps noting any new addresses in your files? Checking the local papers for prospects?’
‘Thanks, that will be useful. We both have appointments this afternoon, different times but it eats into the routine work. And we try not to work all evening.’
‘We can’t anyway. Living in Badgers Brook means the evenings are filled with visitors, and we don’t want that to change,’ Meriel said.
‘Has Leo been lately?’ he asked.
Meriel shook her head, laughing to hide her disappointment from Teifion and Lucy. ‘He’ll come if we need him but I think that, at last, Dadda and he both know we’re managing perfectly well.’
Lucy stared at her friend, aware that she was not the only one feeling the loss of someone they had hoped was dependable. Meriel was wondering how she could encourage Leo to call. She was still confused by her growing affection, it made her vulnerable to embarrassment. She couldn’t admit she simply wanted to see him. She needed a good reason to ask for his help, a genuine difficulty would protect herself from possible humiliation.
Lucy’s cold provided her with the excuse she needed. Lucy awoke one morning with a headache and a streaming nose. A cough threatened. her eyes were reluctant to open and her legs felt weak. Meriel insisted her friend stayed home and rested. ‘It’s the only thing to do, spoil yourself for a day or so. I’ll manage, there’s your Teifion, he'll help us.‘
‘He isn’t my Teifion!’ Lucy protested weakly.
‘Funny how he enjoyed spiting his father, isn’t it?’ Meriel mused. ‘Him helping us must make George very angry. First we steal customers from him, then make him face up to his wife’s misbehaviour and now we’ve stolen his son.’
During a phone call to her father, Meriel casually mentioned Lucy’s illness. She heard muffled remarks as her father covered the phone, then he said, ‘Leo’s on his way.’
‘There’s no need,’ she protested weakly, before happily replacing the phone. Her smile faded as she wondered how best to bring the conversation around to his secret love.
Teifion had left by the time Leo arrived and, as it was almost lunchtime, they closed the office and took a few treats back to Badgers Brook to coax Lucy to eat.
During the afternoon, Leo checked through the accounts and the prospects for the following few days and noticed a few pencil crosses on many of the pages. Tiny marks almost invisible. He frowned as he was assured by Meriel that neither she nor Lucy had made them. So what were they for?
‘Perhaps Teifion was making another list. He seems very keen on double-checking so we don’t miss a chance of a sale. He’s very helpful,’ Meriel said. ‘And,’ she added in a whisper, ‘I think he’s rather sweet on our Lucy.’
‘Watch him, Meriel. Remember who his father is.’
Lucy came back the following day, insisting she was feeling well enough to work, and for the first time since the auction, Teifion didn’t appear. At five o’clock, as the office was about to close, there was a telephone call from a solicitor telling them Mr George Dexter would like to make an offer to buy their business.